Rest in Peace, Paul Kihiu

It has been a while since I penned a post, blame it on the whirlwind of life's pressures and CORONA (blame all on Corona) but now is a good time to come out of retirement and do a blogpost after receiving the news of the demise of Paul Kihiu. I mourn you my friend and this is how.

Paul Kihiu at AFLEWO 2014. A true patriot. 

Sunday morning 26th April, I missed a call from Ruguru, a good friend as I was hurrying to get to my church online service which I was facilitating. After the service, I took my phone and saw a message on WhatsApp informing me that Paul Kihiu had just rested. Distraught by the news, I called Kaberia immediately to confirm the news and explain to me what had happened. As we spoke, it occurred to me that indeed Paul was no more. The news of his demise jolted me to a halt and I became disoriented for the rest of the day. It was a gloomy day with the weather looking as dull as the news I had received. I called our mutual friends to condole with them as we reacted to the news. Paul Kihiu died after a short illness at the Aga Khan and with the pandemic I wondered why God allowed it to happen.

Every once and again, some life events happen that make you question God's sovereignty, God's goodness and sometimes the very existence of God. As if the pandemic that is Corona happening across the globe is not enough to ask all manner of questions, the death of a friend during these times makes it worse. Would I call Paul, a friend? would Paul call me a friend? Well, I don't know but to me Paul was a big brother, a mentor as he was to many. I met Paul at the first orientation meeting of AFLEWO in 2006 where he was explaining the vision of AFLEWO. Listening to the man, I could tell that this thing AFLEWO is a big deal. Up to that point, I had not heard a vision articulated in such a manner to the extent that it had a statement that all of us were to recite and keep at heart. Somehow, the way he explained it, I just caught it and from there on I knew AFLEWO will be a significant part of my life. I had joined as a tenor choir member and little did I know that after a few years, I would be interacting with Paul more closely than on that day. As I sat there listening to Paul explain what AFLEWO is, I had to remind myself that I was in a church, a spiritual meeting. He had this presentation that felt like I was in a corporate meeting only that it was voluntary and not mandatory. Oh and without HR ramifications. Up to that point, I did not expect a church initiative to have a corporate feel to it but as Paul explained it, I knew this was not your average worship group.

2013 and AFLEWO was doing a special event to commemorate Kenya @50. AFLEWO organised a trip to Mt. Kenya to hoist a banner to declare YHWH as God over Kenya and reestablish God in Kenya for the next 50 years. I signed up for this bucket list item and Paul Kihiu was also part of the crew. We had done some preparations prior but nothing was going to compare to climbing 4985m above sea level. Over 5 days in May of 2013, we trekked across the mountain talking all manner of things and this was the first time I really interacted with Paul closely. Paul surprised us with his mountain climbing gear, he had this bag-pack that even had solar charger panels to charge his phone and a walking stick that was not a broomstick. His boots were proper boots and had been not been bought at Gikomba from where we had gotten ours. He was well suited and prepared. Clearly, this was not his first time to climb the mountain. He was ready for the climb. I was impressed and put a mental note to don up properly the next time I was hiking. Paul chipped in to all our conversations but what stood out for me was that he would first listen to our arguments (you argue a lot about anything and nothing when you are in the mountain) and then chip in with a comment or two which would bring the argument to a close. Like he would have a final say and all parties would feel satisfied with the conclusion of the argument. I noticed how he was always the last to speak after everything had been said.

Ready for the climb

Paul donning his gear hoisting the flag of Kenya and the AFLEWO plaque at Point Lenana on Mt. Kenya.

At Mt. Kenya park before the start of the journey to point Lenana

I am so glad we got to document this journey. Listen to Paul's passionate message on why AFLEWO did this. A remarkable man

Fast forward and I was appointed as AFLEWO chairman in 2016. By then, Paul had left the role and was now part of the Sing Africa Board, the parent company that AFLEWO operates under. I had served under 2 previous chairmen who raved about the brilliance of Paul's leadership. As I took over the role of chair, I had this picture of Paul Kihiu as the model chair who I wanted to emulate and could still feel his presence though he was not actively involved. That year, the proposal to ticket AFLEWO was brought up again as a crowd control mechanism. The issue sharply divided the management team and being a chair, I had to take a decision and opted not to ticket. This brought a big rift in the team so much so that Paul Kihiu got wind of the story and asked to meet with me and Moses Kimani who was deputizing me at the time. We met at Kempinski and listening to all our concerns, he spoke last and gave his opinion on the matter. I will never forget how his view and words just brought sanity to that whole conversation. Kimani and I left that meeting thinking how much this man spoke with wisdom that brought peace. He reminded Kimani and I that at the core of AFLEWO is unity and as leaders we must do everything it takes to ensure AFLEWO remains united and nothing divides us. He tasked us with going back to the team and agree together the best course of action for AFLEWO that season. Wisdom prevailed. What can I say, Paul just oozed wisdom every time he spoke.

If there was a man you needed to accompany you to meet the President, it must have been Paul Kihiu. His demeanor, his aura just preceded you and you felt comfortable. He was a calming influence and you always felt he can deal with whatever comes up. Another incident comes to mind when his persona just solved a problem. It must have been 2014 and we were preparing for the event and we were at Winners' Chapel setting up and making final preparations. The resident associations around the South B area came over to meet us at the venue to voice their displeasure at the noise levels they heard when we were testing the sound. At the time, the auditorium had not been sound proofed and so it was difficult to contain the sound. All the same, AFLEWO had kept it at the required decibels but the resident association could hear none of it (pun intended) and this was the making of a crisis. We met at around 7 p.m. on the eve of the event and matters escalated to the point where the resident association threatened to get a court injunction the next day to stop the meeting due to noise disturbance. They mocked our God saying that we did not need to shout for God to hear, and when you put together the radical faithful of Winners' Chapel in a room with hardliners then you are in for a fight. Things degenerated and almost became a shouting match. By this time, Paul Kihiu had been told of the issue at hand and was on his way coming. As the meeting progressed, it was clear that there would be no consensus and that something had to give. It was also clear that AFLEWO will not cancel the event but at the same time it was a very real possibility that a court injunction would stop the event. Then Paul Kihiu walked into the sanctuary at the heat of the moment...and order was restored. I am not sure what the resident associations officials saw in him but they coiled and their vocal members started stammering (maybe I exaggerate but I thought they lost their voices) and their threats became empty noises. Paul spoke a few words in his usual calmness, talking as a man in charge of the situation and it was clear that the matter was resolved. His persona won the battle for us on that day. AFLEWO hosted 4 more events at Winners' Chapel without the issue resurfacing. I picked a few leadership lessons on that day.

AFLEWO has lost a true icon, a legend and a man whose legacy shall forever remain. AFLEWO's governance and foundation is down right to this man. He brought stability to this movement. Every time you met Paul, you felt you were interacting with greatness and his footprints are all over from the corporate level to AFLEWO, his presence was always felt. My last conversation with Paul was earlier this year when we were preparing a send off party for one of our AFLEWO members and he told me he would not make it to come but sent me his contribution. When one of our team members at AFLEWO lost his brother, he sent his condolences. He was still in touch with us despite not being actively involved in leadership. He did not miss the AFLEWO fundraising 'runs' that we organised a few times. He was always there. A born leader. You could feel that Paul led a purposeful life, a life fully lived and in his demise, his greatness is well and truly amplified.

Presenting a gift to the winner of the 5KM Run

With AFLEWO leaders from all AFLEWO chapters

Personally, I will miss you Paul and we would always joke that AFLEWO's leadership must be held by persons whose name was Paul. A tale of two Pauls. Rest well my friend, mentor.
Praying for peace and comfort to Maggie and your children. The God of Paul, He shall take care of you. He got you.